Contact
Office of Financial Aid
Location: Clarke Hall 143
Walk-In Hours: Monday-Friday 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Appointments encouraged
rufinancialaid@regis.edu
303.458.4126
Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) Policy
The financial aid Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy is required by the federal government and is the policy that confirms students qualify for their financial aid awards based on their academic record.
The information here provides the minimum requirements for maintaining eligibility for all types of financial aid, definitions of terms used, how to regain eligibility and detailed frequently asked questions and answers.
There are many other financial aid and scholarship eligibility factors that are not described in this policy, such as aggregate loan limits, documented financial need, etc. The policy described here is only one part of required financial aid policies. These policies do not cover a student’s eligibility for other financial benefits, such as veteran's benefits. Please refer to these separate policies for further information.
What is SAP?
SAP is the Satisfactory Academic Progress (SAP) policy that defines the minimum requirements for a student to begin and to maintain eligibility for financial aid. This policy is separate from the one written by any of the Regis University academic units and requires students to:
- Successfully complete courses with a passing grade of A, B, C, D, or P (Pass). Grades of F, W (Withdraw), N (No Pass), A (Audit) or I (Incomplete) are not considered to have been successfully completed and can impact SAP status.
- Maintain a minimum 2.0 cumulative grade point average (CGPA) for undergraduate students or 3.0 CGPA for graduate students.
- Successfully complete at least one course per semester (if attempted)
- Undergraduate students should complete the degree/certificate program within 150 percent of the total number of credits required to graduate. If the undergraduate program requires 120 credits to graduate, then the maximum eligibility is limited to 180 credits (120 credits * 150 percent). Graduate students should complete their degree/certificate program within 200 percent of the total number of credits required to graduate. If the graduate program requires 36 hours to graduate, then the maximum eligibility is limited to 72 credits (36 credits * 200 percent).
- Maintain a 67 percent cumulative completion rate for undergraduate students and 50 percent cumulative completion rate for graduate students. The cumulative completion rate percentage is calculated by dividing the total number of credit hours successfully completed (received a passing grade) by the total number of hours attempted. If an undergraduate has attempted 90 credit hours but has only successfully completed 51 credit hours, the cumulative completion rate is 56.6 percent.
The financial aid SAP policy is required by the federal government. There is a separate policy for students who have active financial aid consortium agreements in place. A consortium agreement is a formal agreement between Regis University and another college to include courses at the other college when calculating financial aid eligibility. Regis University is considered the home institution and agrees to provide financial aid for the combined courses since all of the courses are applicable to the Regis University degree program.
The SAP policy applies to a student’s entire degree program, including terms in which financial aid was not applied for or disbursed with the exception of the Regis University Employee Tuition Benefit. ETB recipients automatically qualify for the first semester of ETB regardless of their SAP status. After the first semester of receiving ETB, the student must meet all of the minimum requirements of the financial aid SAP policy to maintain ETB eligibility.
If a student’s academic record meets all of the requirements of the SAP policy, then the student is eligible for financial aid (if all other financial aid eligibility requirements are also met). If the student’s academic record fails one or more of the SAP minimum requirements, the student is no longer eligible for financial aid. To regain eligibility, the student’s record must be improved or the student may appeal to have their financial aid reinstated.
View Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy (PDF)
View Satisfactory Academic Progress for Consortium Students (PDF)
Regaining Financial Aid Eligibility
There are two methods for regaining financial aid eligibility:
First, a student’s academic record may improve so that it meets all of the minimum SAP requirements. It is the student’s responsibility to notify the SAP Committee (fasap@regis.edu)if this occurs.
Second, the student may appeal his or her status and the SAP Committee may approve an exception to the SAP policy. Submitting an appeal does not guarantee that financial aid eligibility will be reinstated.
How to Appeal SAP for Loss of Financial Aid Eligibility
If a student has lost financial aid eligibility for failure to meet one or more of the SAP minimum requirements, he or she may appeal their status by writing an appeal and submitting it to the SAP Committee for consideration.
In order to appeal, a student must provide:
- The Satisfactory Academic Progress Appeal Form
- An explanation of what circumstances or issues prevented them from successfully completing their courses during the period of enrollment in which they were not successful
- How the circumstances have changed and/or the issues have been resolved
- The student’s plan to successfully meet the SAP requirements moving forward
- Available documentation to support their appeal (for example, if a student experienced a medical emergency, they should provide documentation showing the time frame, hospital stay, doctor recommendations, etc.)
Appeals should be emailed to fasap@regis.edu. The SAP Committee may review a student’s appeal and request additional documentation, if necessary.
Please note: Regis University has a responsibility to provide a safe and nondiscriminatory environment. If your appeal references sexual misconduct or protected class discrimination or harassment, the financial aid staff is obligated to report allegations of this nature to the Equal Opportunity & Title IX Coordinator at Regis University, in addition to considering your appeal.
Frequently Asked Questions
The SAP minimum requirement for semester pace is reviewed at the end of each semester. All other SAP minimum requirements are reviewed at the end of the spring semester.
Students are notified as quickly as possible the results of their appeal, but no later than 14 days from submitting their appeal. If an appeal is received and more information is requested, an appeal decision will not be made until all documentation is received.
Once the SAP Committee has reviewed the appeal and a decision has been made, you will receive an email to your RegisNet account.
If your appeal is denied, you may still take courses at Regis University without financial aid assistance. You are welcome to connect with Student Accounts to discuss payment options. If you successfully complete courses, please contact us at fasap@regis.edu to have the SAP Committee review your file.
You may choose to take classes at another institution and then return to Regis University. If those classes are successfully completed, please contact us at fasap@regis.edu and provide a copy of your unofficial transcript documenting your grades to have the SAP Committee review your file. Grades that you earn at another institution are not included in your Regis University grade point average.
If you have additional documentation you would like the SAP Committee to consider following a denied appeal or if you wish to discuss your appeal further, you may reach out to the SAP Committee at fasap@regis.edu or 303.458.3506.
Yes, you can withdraw from a course while on probation. However, withdrawing from a course may impact your SAP status for future semesters.
We encourage you to consider withdrawing, if necessary, rather than failing your course(s) if successfully completing the course(s) is not an option. However, per the terms of the academic plan, withdrawing from a course nullifies the academic plan and you must regain satisfactory academic progress on your own without financial aid assistance or you must appeal with the SAP Committee.
A grade of “I/F” indicates that you did not yet successfully complete the course and it may impact SAP status. If you successfully complete the course and the grade is updated, you should reach out to the SAP Committee at fasap@regis.edu or 303.458.3506 to review the file and determine aid eligibility status.
If a grade has been updated after our initial review and you may now be meeting SAP requirements, you should reach out to the SAP Committee at fasap@regis.edu or 303.458.3506 to review your file and determine your aid eligibility status.